Gameplay:
QE is an auction game with set collection aspects in which players bid imaginary amounts of money for stakes in major companies. The bidding mechanic here is what makes the game stand out. Players are given whiteboards to bid with, and very limited information - only one other player’s bid is announced each round prior to everyone else submitting their number secretly - and left to bid anything. Since you don’t actually collect money or income in this game, that means you can bid any number you can imagine.
Only the auctioneer walks away with an understanding of how much each losing player bid, so there is a lot of hidden information in this game as well. This is important because at the beginning of the game, players have a secret goal they’re working towards in one of the industries, and having insight into what that goal is for your opponents gives you a strategic advantage.
At the end, you’re scored for categories that you have accumulated during the game, and the player with the most points wins…so long as they didn’t spend the most imaginary money.
Gameplay:
QE is an auction game with set collection aspects in which players bid imaginary amounts of money for stakes in major companies. The bidding mechanic here is what makes the game stand out. Players are given whiteboards to bid with, and very limited information - only one other player’s bid is announced each round prior to everyone else submitting their number secretly - and left to bid anything. Since you don’t actually collect money or income in this game, that means you can bid any number you can imagine.
Only the auctioneer walks away with an understanding of how much each losing player bid, so there is a lot of hidden information in this game as well. This is important because at the beginning of the game, players have a secret goal they’re working towards in one of the industries, and having insight into what that goal is for your opponents gives you a strategic advantage.
At the end, you’re scored for categories that you have accumulated during the game, and the player with the most points wins…so long as they didn’t spend the most imaginary money.
Final Thoughts:
QE stands for Quantitative Easing, a financial term that I think isn’t a concept that most average people are aware of. I know I wasn’t, and yet, at the end of the game and just a slight bit of reading later, I feel like I’m an expert now. So QE is an oddly educational game, and unlike anything else in my collection.
I’m a math teacher for a living, and my game group consists of quite a few math teachers, and that definitely colors my opinion of the game. We LOVE this game, because the ability to bid any amount is wonderful creative freedom to take the mechanics of this game as far as possible. Sometimes our highest scoring player is in the quintillions of dollars, and one time they spent just thousands.
I’ve also played this with a number of groups where everyone is just a little bit wary and uncomfortable from start to finish. Unfortunately, these groups outnumber the ones who really like this game, and since QE is a very interactive, social game, that makes for an unpleasant time for all.
If you enjoy math, you’ll probably like this game. And if you hate math, or find it intimidating, then QE is probably not going to be your cup of tea. The math is the entire element of difficulty and complexity here - this is a game that you can learn as you play despite having variable setups - so it strikes an excellent balance between being light and heavy.
Components & artwork here are fine. The game isn’t a looker. I suppose that the focus of the game being government and corporate asset management, combating inflation and economic depressions likely doesn’t call for much use of color and vivid imagery, but the art is functional at best. I do think that the graphic design elements are well done, and I particularly like that the box is exactly the right size for the game, components and expansion without adding too much extra empty space.
The base game alone feels just a bit incomplete. This has been remedied somewhat by the inclusion of the expansion QE: Commodities which really emphasizes creative bidding as you attempt to outwit your opponents. In this expansion, you buy commodities for points and sell them to reduce the amount you spend. It makes second place much more appetizing, and prevents runaway winners or spenders from deciding their fate too early in the game. I thoroughly enjoy the inclusion of the expansion, and it’s one of those expansions that you can just add to your base game and play with immediately.
So this is a very polarizing game that, if nothing else, I think everyone should experience at least once. Like a lot of other experimental games that came before, the puzzle of how this was developed and made into a cohesive package is clever in a way that few other games have ever managed. You may not enjoy this one, but if you’re like me, you’ll probably find this a fascinating game.
Zatu Review Summary
Score Zatu
70%
